Blue Note Jazz Club is proud to present a double feature showcasing two of jazz’s most talked about new artists: guitarist Nir Felder and pianist/keyboardist Kris Bowers. Both artists have received critical acclaim and are performing in support of their recent debut albums released in 2014.

Described by NPR as “…the next big jazz guitarist,” Nir Felder recently released his debut album, “Golden Age,” on OKeh/Sony Masterworks.

Called “the next big jazz guitarist” by NPR, hailed by the New York Times as a “whiz kid,” and dubbed “incredible” by the Montreal Gazette, Nir Felder is a new voice in jazz guitar. Growing up in the New York City suburbs, Felder spent his youth playing in rock bands while learning about jazz at the local record store, inspired by icons from John Coltrane to voodoo chile Jimi Hendrix. After attending Berklee College of Music on a full scholarship, Felder moved to New York City in 2006 and quickly became one of the city’s most highly sought after sideman, notching credits in bands led by Grammy winner Esperanza Spalding, Terri Lyne Carrington, Jack DeJohnette, Greg Osby, Eric Harland, José James, Meshell Ndegeocello, and Cindy Blackman and performing with the New York City Opera, Dianne Reeves, Bobby McFerrin, Stanley Clarke, Lizz Wright, Matisyahu, Black Sheep and others at venues including Radio City Music Hall and the Village Vanguard and national television stations NBC and Fox.

Encouraged by praise for his unique sound and style and seeking a more personal creative outlet, Felder formed his own group in 2010, performing sold-out shows in New York City and around Europe. A year long biweekly residency at New York’s 55 Bar followed, where Felder was joined by much of the city’s greatest talent, including Kevin Hays, Aaron Parks, Aaron Goldberg, Uri Caine, Greg Osby, Chris Potter, David Binney, Ben Street, Matt Penman, Scott Colley, John Patitucci, James Genus, Tim Lefebvre, Nate Smith, Mark Guiliana, Shawn Pelton, Ali Jackson, Keith Carlock, Anton Fig, and members of Brazilian Girls, Dub Trio, Snarky Puppy and Kneebody among many others. Says Felder, “I felt like when we played, no matter who was in the band, the audience reacted in a way that let us know that what we were doing was something they felt was missing in their musical experience, something they thought was special. Whether they were commenting on the Stratocaster I played or the compositions or the improvisation, the response was always that this was something new and exciting for them, something they felt strongly about.”

Kris Bowers

Pianist Kris Bowers is one of the newest and brightest lights on the jazz landscape. Schooled in jazz and classical music, raised amid the rap and hip-hop of the 1990s, inspired by the cinematic power of the great film composers of recent decades, Bowers’ sound – though rooted in traditional styles – is open to numerous external influences that keep the music fresh and vibrant for a new century. This rich and eclectic sensibility is evident from the very first notes of Heroes + Misfits, his debut recording on Concord Jazz.

Bowers’ musical sensibilities were taking shape before he even saw the light of day. The story has it that his parents positioned headphones on his mother’s belly and piped soft jazz directly into his evolving consciousness in the months before he was born. And it was just the beginning.